I remember very distinctly going back to the exam room and having an extremely nice woman telling me what she was going to do. It was her first time as well. Wonderful, I thought, just wonderful. She did an excellent job and was very gentle. I had no pain whatsoever. I asked her if I could take a look at what she was looking at and she showed me the monitor. She told me that the lining of my uterus was pretty thick, especially for the part of the cycle I was at and that it appeared as if my uterus was tilted. She quickly changed her mind about my uterus being tilted and said it wasn't tilted at all, that it was just long (if you know me, that pretty much sums up how I'm built- long and thin). She told me that being a technician she really wasn't supposed to be making assumptions, but it looked as if I could be in the early stages of pregnancy (I was elated). She continued the exam and said she didn't think I was pregnant, that maybe I just was naturally built that way (bummer). When the exam was over she submitted my scans to the doctor and sent me on my way.
It takes about 20 minutes to get to the Naval Hospital so on my way back home I decided I'd call my friend, M, and then my mom and let them know what was going on (E was at work, remember). M was the one who encouraged me to go to the doctor to begin with and her support throughout these, current, 26 months has been amazing. I needed them both to know what was going on, I needed someone to talk to. In the midst of my conversation with my mom Naval hospital was calling me. I knew I had to take the call. It was my doctor. She said that I needed to come back right away and take a pregnancy test, that my scan looked like I could have an ectopic pregnancy. Being very new to this, I didn't really know what it meant, I just heard the word "pregnancy". I quickly told mom what was going on and that I had to go, I'd call her later. I probably scared the crap out of her (sorry mom!). I called M and let her know as well, she said something like, "Oh no! But, at least there's a light at the end of the tunnel and you are able to get pregnant and they caught it very early on." What does that even mean? I was so scared. I went to the lab right away, took a number, sat down and googled "ectopic pregnancy" while I waited. I shouldn't have done that because this is what I found: "An ectopic pregnancy is a pregnancy that occurs outside the womb (uterus). It is a life-threatening condition to the mother. The baby (fetus) cannot survive....The most common site for an ectopic pregnancy is within one of the tubes through which the egg passes from the ovary to the uterus. However, in rare cases, ectopic pregnancies can occur in the ovary, stomach area, or cervix.". I was in panic mode and shot a text over to E to let him know what was going on. He called me in a panic as well. All we could think about was how dangerous it was for me. I was scared out of my mind and I could hear the panic in his voice.
The nurse finally called my number. She took my blood and had me do a urine sample as well. When I turned in the sample she instructed me to have a seat and wait for the results. As I sat and waited I couldn't help but try to answer the 8,000 questions running through my head. What if I were pregnant and they had to take a fallopian tube? What if I'm not pregnant can I concieve? What if I'm not pregnant, what is wrong with me? (I think you get the point) The nurse finally came to me and told me that I could go that they would call me either way with a negative or positive result. Great, just more time to sit and wallow in my sorrows. I got home and waited. As I waited I got a phone call from a friend that I don't get to talk to quite often so I took it. She can always tell when something is wrong so I let her know and she had the same reaction as M. I thought, you know what, they're right. At least I can conceive.
When I finally received the call, I had a strange reaction. The results were negative. I was not pregnant and it was not an ectopic pregnancy. I cried. I didn't know what I wanted to hear. I mean, I wasn't at risk of loosing a fallopian tube, dying, or having a fetus that couldn't survive, so that was good, but on the other hand there isn't a light at the end of the tunnel...I'm still, after 10 months, unable to conceive. I was instructed to come back the next day to have another trans-vaginal ultrasound just to "make sure".
I went back the very next day and had someone completely different doing the exam. She wasn't as gentle and you could tell she was very experienced. In the midst of the exam she showed me some spots where I could have a possible cyst. She went and got the doctor (which to me is never good) and he took a look. He concluded that it was a (insert long medical term that I don't remember here) functional cyst. He said that it is caused by ovulation and it will dissolve very quickly. He said that it is very common and normal and for me to not worry about it. I asked the appropriate, "will it prevent me from having children?". His response was, "it will dissolve and it will probably come back every so often, but, no, you have nothing to worry about." He also told me that I had already ovulated and that my cycle would begin within the next couple days (explains why the uterine lining was so thick).
So over the next couple days I waited for my cycle to begin. It came right when the doctor said it would and I called the hospital to schedule my HSG. 9 more days to wait...it has to be performed around day 10-12 of your menstrual cycle.
The wait and the worry begins....what if it's me?
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